Improvement in cultivators



A. 0. STOCKING.

Cuitivato' r." No. 55,175. Patented May 29, I866,

N,PETER5, PHOTO LITHDGRAPMEH, WASHINGTON. D. G.

UNITED STATES PATENT Orrrcn.

AMOS D. STOCKING, ()F DOWAGIAG, MICHIGAN.

IMPROVEMENT IN CULTIVATORS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 55, [75, dated May 29, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, AMos D. STOCKING, of Dowagiac, in the county of Cass and State of Michigan, have invented a new and Improved Cultivator; and I do hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exact description thereof, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a top view of the improved cultivator. Fig. 2 is an elevation of one side of the same. Fig. 3 is a longitudinal vertical section through the cultivator, showing the shovel-standards elevated. Fig. 4 is a similar view, showing the standards depressed.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several figures.

This invention relates to certain novel improvements on one-horse cultivators which are guided and controlled by a person walking behind them.

It consists, in part, in sustaining the rear end of such a cultivator upon a caster-wheel in such manner that the person having hold of the handles of the machine can more perfectly, and with less inconvenience, guide and control its movements in cultivating between rows of plants and in moving the machine about generally, as will be hereinafter described.

It also consists in arranging the shovelstandards between longitudinal bars of the main frame and keeping the standards down in working position by means of transverse rods which take into notches in the front edges of said standards and act in conjunction with front bracing-rods, as will be hereinafter described.

It also consists in the employment of a pivoted lever-board which is arranged transversely across the top of an open frame of a cultivator having its shovels arranged in a gang, said board being connected to the several shovel-standardsin such manner that they can all be raised or lowered together by the person guiding the machine, as will be hereinafter described.

To enable others skilled in the art to understand my invention, I will describe its construction and operation.

The frame of the cultivator consists of two side beams, A A, which are prolonged, so as to form the thills, and which are secured together by means of transverse beams B B, between which longitudinal pieces 0 O are framed, as shown in Fig. 1. This frame is provided with two stilts or handles, D D, by which a person right or left and to control its movements without an expenditure of much manual labor. The caster-wheel support will greatly assist the attendant in cultivating between rows of plants, particularly the rows which are irregularly laid out, as it will avoid the necessity of lifting the machine bodily from one side to another.

The machine which I have represented in the drawings is adapted for receiving three shovelstandards, E E E, which carry on their lower ends shovels g g g, of any suitable form. The standards are fitted to move freely but snugly between the longitudinal beams of the frame, which prevent any lateral displacement ofthese standards.

Two rods, h h, are applied in front and rear of each standard E, so as to form forward and back supports therefor. Therear rod. It, serves merely to keep the standard in place and allow it to move up and down; but the front transverse rod, h, serves,in conjunction with a notch or notches, t, in the front edge of the standard, to prevent this standard from slipping upward during the forward movement of the machine when the shovel is in the ground. During this operation the inclined brace 70, which is attached to the standard and also to the front transverse beam, B, prevents any backward movement of the standard. It will be seen that the pressure backward against the shovels would force the upper ends of their standards upward and forward were this pressure not resisted by the notches c and transverse rods it. By moving the machine slightly backward the standards can all be detached from their rods h and then moved upward.

To raise or depress the shovel-standards I employ a wide board, G, which is arranged obliquely across the cultivator-frame and pivoted at its ends to the outside longitudinal beams thereof, as shown in Fig. 1. To this vibrating board G, lattach each one of the shovel-standards by means of chain on, and also apply a lever-arm, a, to the board G, by which the 'attendant walking behind the machine can raise or lower the shovel-standards at pleasure. The lever-arm a is so applied to the pivoted board G that this board can be moved so far forward in raising the shovel-standards as to keep them in such position.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The application of a swivel-wheel, a, to the rear end of the frame of a cultivator which is constructed substantially in the inanner described.

2. Keeping the shovel-standards E in proper position during their passage through the soil by means of the transverse rods h and notches 2', combined with the forward braces is, sub- 

